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County Hall has announced that, while the works are underway, the A390 will be closed Monday to Friday, from 9.30am to 4.30pm.

"Access to homes and local amenities will be maintained as much as possible," a spokesman said. "Traffic marshals will be on site at key locations to help provide access through the works for residents and those needing critical facilities, such as the doctor’s surgery.

A390 in Gunnislake (Image: Google Street View)

"The morning run of school buses will not be affected and access will be managed for the afternoon pick-up, although the work may have some impact on timings."

A signed diversion route of about 25 miles will take motorists along the A388 through Callington and Treburley, then the B3362 through Milton Abbot, re-joining the A390 north of Gulworthy.

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Steve Pearce, Cormac’s area surfacing manager, said: "We appreciate our works can cause disruption. Unfortunately the road is too narrow to allow us to maintain any sort of traffic flow while we are working, so we cannot install traffic lights. This leaves a closure as our only option.

"Road closures are always going to have an impact, regardless of the time of day or time of year, but we always do what we can to minimise the disturbance to our local communities.

"This is one reason why the work is being undertaken in winter, well away from the tourism season."

Councillor Andrew Long, Cornwall councillor for Callington, acknowledged the need for the work and said he was pleased by the flexibility demonstrated by Cormac.

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"It is clear that the resurfacing work needs doing," he said. "The road as it stands is not fit for purpose, and everyone would like a smooth, modern transport link able to meet the requirements of the 6000 or so traffic movements we see passing through Gunnislake every day.

"However, the geography of this section of the road makes closing just one lane at a time impossible and therefore Cormac have had to look at an alternative plan. They have also looked into night work but the proximity of residences to the road would lead to environmental health issues for the local population.

"Residents, local service providers, transport companies and local businesses expressed concerns about the potential impacts of the closure. I shared these concerns, so organised for a group of representatives to meet with Cornwall Council and Cormac officers to discuss options and see what could be done to minimise these impacts, and I am pleased to say excellent inroads were made to try and mitigate some of the issues."